2013 Week Two NFL Power Rankings

September 11, 2013Administrator’s note: Just so we are clear before we get to the rankings, even though we got the great privilege to finally see all 32 teams in real live action, that actually mattered, for the first time on Sunday, I am still going to put more of an emphasis on what I thought about these teams coming into the season than what we saw Sunday. It is important to remember that everything in Week One has the potential to be an anomaly. Also, remember to familiarize yourself with the Ross Tucker methodology I use to assemble these rankings (provided on the power rankings home page or explained in Ross’ latest power rankings podcast http://sportsusamedia.com/ross-tucker/). So for example, just because the Eagles beat the Redskins, does not mean that I am going to have them higher in the power rankings, same with the Titans and the Steelers. Now if those teams continue the trends they showed on Sunday in the following weeks, I will adjust the rankings accordingly. For now, repeat after me: its only one game, its only one game, its only one game.32. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1)

After a putrid showing against the Chiefs on Sunday, the Jags get to inherit the number 32 spot on the power rankings. It looks like Chad Henne will get the start Sunday, and the offense will be better with him.

31. Oakland Raiders (0-1)

The Raiders looked much more competitive against the Colts than I ever would have expected after watching them in the preseason. They get to duke it out with the Jaguars on Sunday for the rights to the 32 ranked spot. Oh goodie.

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-1)

the Bucs take a bit of a big drop in the power rankings after losing to the Jets. If you’re going to be a good team in this league you should not lose to a bad team starting a second round rookie quarterback. Tampa Bay earned this tumble.

29. Buffalo Bills (0-1)

E.J. Manuel was not asked to do much, but he executed the limited playbook pretty well. The Bills have to get C.J. Spiller going on in future weeks if they want to have any hopes of consistently winning games. That could be tough this week against the Panthers defense that just shut down Marshawn Lynch.

28. New York Jets (1-0)

The Jets quieted some haters on Sunday. Not that they looked particularly impressive, but they walked away with a win. They draw a Thursday night matchup with the Patriots this week, and I doubt the results will be as favorable to them.

27. Cleveland Browns (0-1)

I am not so shocked that the Browns lost on Sunday, but more by how they lost. Miami has a strong defense, but I was surprised Cleveland’s strong offensive line was letting waves of pressure get to Brandon Weeden. I was also surprised that their best player, Trent Richardson, was not the focal point of the offense. Rob Chudsinski had an annoying habit of not running the football in Carolina, so lets hope Norv Turner sets him straight in future weeks.

26. Minnesota Vikings (0-1)

The season did not start off on a very good note for the Vikings. Despite some new additions, the passing game still does not look capable of taking the load off Adrian Peterson. It is way too early to call any game a must win, but if the Vikings lose to the Bears on Sunday, an 0-2 start will put them way behind in a tough division.

25. San Diego Chargers (0-1)

As per usual, the Chargers predictably blew the game in the end, but you still have to be encouraged by this game if you are San Diego. Phillip Rivers looked like his old self for most of the game, and they had a top AFC team on the ropes until the very end. I do not think the Chargers are very good, but considering I had them slotted as one of the three worst teams in football, perhaps they will exceed my expectations.

24. Tennessee Titans (1-0)

Yes they won on Sunday. No, still I do not think the Titans are very good. I think there victory was more about Pittsburgh playing poorly than Tennessee playing well. Their defense looks better, but I still do not trust their offense. Face it; you are not going to win most weeks in if your offense only puts up sixteen points.

23. Arizona Cardinals (0-1)

I don’t like dropping the Cardinals three spots, because I liked what I saw from them in their loss to the Rams. The offense looks like it can compete most weeks and the defense still looks like a strong unit. This move is more about other teams that needed to be moved up, than the Cardinals performance.

22. Carolina Panthers (0-1)

There are certainly positives to take away from the Panthers loss to Seattle. Their defense was very good, and they gave a team that I have ranked number two on this list just about all they could handle. In the end though, this offense left us with more questions than answers. That unit might not be good enough to let Carolina compete. SImilar to the Cardinals drop, the Panthers fall more because other teams needed to be moved up.

21. Detroit Lions (1-0)

That was a pretty impressive win for Detroit but I will need to see more before I really move them up this list. There were still too many stupid “trying to be tough” type errors from this team. Take Ndamukong Suh’s dirty, illegal low block on Vikings center Jon Sullivan for example. When is that guy, and this team, going to learn?

20. Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)

Chip Kelly’s high paced offense will be the talk of the town, and at least for one half, it was all rosy in Philadelphia. I have at least three major questions about the system for the rest of this year. Is Michael Vick going to be able to effectively run it for an entire season? He was still making poor throws and already looked beat up on Monday. Lastly, will Kelly be able to run that pace for a longer NFL season and will a roster full of grown men be able to handle it for the long haul, as opposed to 90 eighteen to twenty year olds under scholarship?

19. Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1)

Another team that earned their fall down the power rankings. I cannot remember the last time I saw such a pathetic outing from Pittsburgh team that was not playing baseball. Of course I am not ready to totally write them off, but I have to say, I would not be shocked if we see a sub .500 team in Pittsburgh this year.

18. Miami Dolphins (1-0)

Miami holds steady for this week. I knew their defense was going to be a top ten unit this year, but I was still very impressed with how they dismantled a really strong Browns offensive line. I feel better than ever about ranking Cameron Wake as the best 4-3 defensive end in football this summer after watching him dominate on Sunday (http://www.thebackyardbanter.com/top-10-nfl-defensive-lineman-rankings.html).

17. New York Giants (0-1)

I already had the Giants ranked lower than most, and therefore did not feel the need to move them any further down the power rankings after their loss Sunday. You can choose to look at the Giants two ways after Sunday. Either you can say “holy crap, they turned the ball over six times!” or you can say “holy crap the game was that close even though they turned the ball over six times!” It just depends if you want to look at them glass half full or half empty.

16. Dallas Cowboys (1-0)

Let me be clear, in no way do I feel comfortable having the Cowboys ranked this high. I was thoroughly unimpressed with the product they put on the field Sunday night. They were almost as sloppy as the Giants and they let them hang around way too long despite stealing six turnovers. I am still not high on this team, and I do not expect the Cowboys to hold this spot for very long.

15. Kansas City Chiefs (1-0)

Kansas City gets a small, one spot bump up the power rankings after a “take care of business” type win at Jacksonville last week. I still do not know if I am ready to buy that they are a playoff type team, but just the fact that they went on the road and simply dismantled a terrible team shows you how much better they are with Andy Reid and Alex Smith around.

14. Indianapolis Colts (1-0)

I held the Colts steady in this spot as well, but it simply should never have been that close of a game against the lowly Raiders. Their defense does not look any better despite an attempt to add bodies in the offseason. Andrew Luck showed once again he can always bail this team out, but frankly, he should not have to.

13. Washington Redskins (0-1)

I know Washington was pretty brutal for most of Monday night, but I feel like they kind of ran into a buzz saw in that game. With the combination of a clearly rusty Robert Griffin, and the never before seen Chip Kelly Eagles, the Redskins probably did not stand much of a chance. Like I said in my Week in Review section, we probably just saw Washington’s worst game of the season, so no reason to sound the panic alarm yet.

12. St. Louis Rams (1-0)

Let me take this moment to bash the Titans for a second. It was not hard to see former Titans, and current Rams, tight end Jared Cook was dripping with talent; there was a reason everyone was always calling for him to be on the field more and listing him as a breakout candidate. The Titans however, continued to keep him off the field the last several years and not make him and integral part of the game plan because he is not an able blocker. So what? It is good the Rams recognized that even though he may be weak in one aspect of the game it does not mean you cannot utilize his talents and receive elite production. That would be called good coaching. But I am sure the Titans will really enjoy how great of blocker Delanie Walker is. Rant over.

11. Atlanta Falcons (0-1)

I feel like Week one kind of showed me the Falcons are who I thought they were. Sure, losing to the Saints in their raucous Superdome is reasonable, but their flaws looked too obvious to ignore. Tony Gonzalez and Steven Jackson look a step slower, their offensive line got completely dismantled, and there was too much working against Matt Ryan for him to bail them out.

10. Houston Texans (1-0)

I kept Houston in the tenth spot even though they did not blow away the Chargers like I expected. I tend to look at it this way. One of my biggest concerns with Houston the past couple of years has been that they never seemed to be a team that could come from behind and win. Well, they did just that against the Chargers, so one could say that is a good sign. Of course, you could say they need to be able that against a more quality opponent.

9. Cincinnati Bengals (0-1)

The Bengals kind of gave one away on Sunday. The Bears are a great team, and the game was in their house, but it would have been an impressive start to the season if the Bengals had managed to secure that road win. Luckily for them, their entire division started the year out with a zero in the win column as well, so they are not behind or anything.

8. Baltimore Ravens (0-1)

I am not going to kill the Ravens for what happened to them on Thursday night. It was such a weird game, with it being in Denver (thank you baseball!) and with the weather delay and frankly the Broncos are going to do that to a lot of teams this year. Not to mention this was Week One in the high altitude Denver air that the Ravens just are not used to; conditioning could have been a factor in the second half when the game got out of hand. That sounds like a bunch of excuses, but they are valid points. I bet that defense plays better going forward, but I have a ton of concerns all over the offense.

7. Chicago Bears (1-0)

I am even more excited about the Bears after watching them in Week One. The Bengals are a good team, and not allowing them any sacks is just huge for a team that has actually finally tried hard to fix their offensive line. The defense looks like it has picked up right where it left off, and the Trestman show on offense is just scratching the surface.

6. New Orleans Saints (1-0)

Not a bad debut for Rob Ryan’s defense in New Orleans. Here’s the deal. The Saints do not need to shutdown opponents week in and week out. If they play like they did on Sunday, and can field at least an average defense, they are going to be a playoff team. We know they can score on everybody; they just need a defense that can at least keep everyone from scoring back on them.

5. New England Patriots (1-0)

I would feel better about the Patriots if they had blown out the Bills on Sunday. Nevertheless, I am willing to bet they get some of their issues corrected. A home game against the Jets in primetime could be just what the doctor ordered. Speaking of doctors, it sounds as if Danny Amendola is already on the questionable side of things for Thursday night’s game. Surprise, surprise.

4. Green Bay Packers (0-1)

No movement for the Packers this week. I firmly believe they are an elite team, and they just lost to a team I have in my top spot on these rankings. It is not like they put forth a poor showing at all on Sunday. I am really interested to see how they play against the Redskins this coming week.

3. Denver Broncos (1-0)

Denver’s offensive explosion should come as no surprise to anyone. They have assembled an all-star passing game led by a future Hall of Fame quarterback, so its not like this is news. What we should be watching though is how Denver’s pass rush, and defense as a whole, fairs in the coming weeks. They did not look so good in the first half and until Michael Oher left the game. Come back for my picks later in the week, because I am going to be predicting that Peyton gives his little brother and his Giants a real smack down next week.

2. Seattle Seahawks (1-0)

The naysayers will point out how the Seahawks almost let an inferior opponent upset them, or the fact that they only scored twelve points, but here is what really happened. Seattle came across country and handled their business against a team with a really strong defense all while missing one of their stud corners and their three best pass rushers. Frankly, the result of this game was never in doubt and Russell Wilson won the game when he needed to without the help of his usually strong running attack. Seattle is a great team.

1. San Francisco 49ers (1-0)

I did not see anything on Sunday to make me consider moving the 49ers out of the number one spot. In fact I was more impressed than I expected to be with their passing attack. Anquan Boldin looks reborn in a 49ers uniform, and Kaepernick just kept threading the needle on some of those passes. It is important to point out that newly anointed starter, and rookie safety, Eric Reid was highly impressive in his debut. There were questions about him coming out of LSU and how he would replace Dashon Goldson, but he looked every bit up to the challenge. As it stands today, it is tough to find a weak spot on this roster.

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